They say the single most important quality a man needs when trying to impress a woman is confidence. It’s true, we read it in Man’s Fithealth, or CQ Magazine or something. And although all Kipp can be confident of is certain failure when it comes to women, we have observed that our more confident friends tend to do better with pretty much everyone. People like confidence – both men and women. It attracts them, it affects them… it can even rub off on them.

So the latest Bayt.com/YouGov Siraj mash-up is good news for the UAE. The Middle Eastern jobs website (Bayt) and the research specialists (YouGov Siraj) have teamed up once again to compile the Consumer Confidence Index. They roll it out every quarter, and the latest figures just hit Kipp’s desk. Why so excited? Well according to the numbers, the UAE gained 2.2 points on the last quarter. No, we don’t really know what that means, but apparently 47 percent of UAE respondents have positive expectations regarding the country’s economy. Yeah, we know what you’re thinking, but in actual fact only 14 percent of people think the UAE economy will get worse. That puts the optimists in the largest camp.

“Our quarterly consumer confidence survey provides a strong indication, each quarter, as to how people living in countries across the region view their current economic situation, and how they believe it will change in the future. By conducting this survey, we are really aiming to achieve an honest and representative overview of current sentiments and feelings about various elements of the economy, so these can be used proactively and for positive effect by organisations and HR stakeholders around the Middle East,” press releases Amer Zureikat, VP Sales, Bayt.com.

Yawn. Let’s get to the point: More confidence is a good thing. It can’t save an economy on its own, but it encourages people to spend and invest – and speculation is key to growth. Confidence within a country also encourages outside parties to invest, meaning inflows of cash. It’s like the woman thing on a huge scale – global investors are drawn to confidence, and a lack of it is a definite turn-off. Confidence may not build an economy, but a lack of it can sure kill one.